Worry about having big baby.

[carlasher]

I know this is just hormones talking but...

Somehow I worry about my baby being big. At 27 weeks, I still havent gained weight (and havent made up for what I lost so far), but I am ALL belly. I know big belly does not = big baby, but still!

Big babies do not run in my family, but I am large boned and very muscular for a woman (though curvy in the right places). I am only 5'5.5" but with a 34" inseam (partly the reason I am all belly), with long arms, size 9 rings, size 11 feet and not overweight - all muscle and bone. My DH is only 5'9', healthy weight and size with smaller bones than I. I know I will be alright, but I fear having a 12 lb baby because of my build!

[chubbycheeks]

All I can say is in my experience your build or what runs in your family doesn't really dictate what the baby's size will be. With DS1, pre-pregnancy I was 5'5" and weighed 110 pounds and am very small framed. DH is not a big guy either, and both of us were small as babies ourselves (I was 5 pounds 11 ounces and DH was just over 6 pounds). That being said, I gained 25 pounds with DS (all belly as well) and he was born 10 days early at 8 pounds 4 ounces and 20.5 inches long. Also, my OB estimated that he would be between 5-6 pounds when he was born just days before I delivered. . . Unfortunatley you really just have to wait and see what's in store for you! Best of luck to you!

[Patchfire]

I don't know if there's any validity to it whatsoever, but people I know seem to talk about their own birth weights and the baby's father's birth weight, rather than their current weight/height. For me, that was a better 'predictor' - I had been a nice 8 lbs 8oz, whereas dh was just over 6 lbs (his mother is TINY), and dd came out right in between, 7 lbs 1 oz.

Still, too, I generally believe that our bodies will not grow a baby too big for us to push out! Yes, if there's some kind of injury or other problem with our pelvic structure, there might be a problem, or some other problem (large difference between size of mother and father might do it, I don't know), but I think usually we get what we can handle. :)

[LoveChild421]

I worry about his too! I am curious though- does a heavy baby usually mean a harder birth or does it have more to do with head and shoulder circumference? I have known women who had a harder time birthing 6 lb babies (but they had big heads) than their 8 lbs babies.

[liawbh]

The women in my family have very large babies, and it actually doesn't seem to correlate with labor difficulty. My aunt's largest was the fastest labor (just under 2 1/2 hours) and my son was born in 4 1/2 hours at 9 lbs 5 oz.

Oh, his head was huge too! He was 95-99th percentile in all measurements.

[Chanley]

No, some of the most beautiful births I have seen have been with 12 pound babies. The only thing in my opinion about a larger baby is that you REALLY listen to your body and have NO DRUGS so taht you can feel when to push. If you let your body open up naturally and give it the time it needs, you will not tear.

I have seen 12lb babies come from small women who had NO tears and beautiful home water births.

The myth of a baby too big is based on hospitals with drugged moms in bad positions. Remember, your body was made for this purpose!

[onlyboys]

My easiest baby to birth was my 9lber. The most difficult was my smallest (and 2nd). My point here is this: You can do it! Have faith! :thumb

Much love and light to you all.

(Sorry for the intrusion!)

[HelloKitty]

About three years ago there was a new study done about size of baby and genetics - I remember it because I was pregnant with my youngest DS and it was all over the news, it said that while the sex of the baby is determined by the father's genetics, new research shows that the size of the baby is determined by the mother's. Thought that was interesting.

I know I've heard people say that size doesn't matter as far as pain goes but in my personal experience it really does make a difference. My first baby was 7.3, second 8.7 and third 9.4 and I can tell you that while labor itself felt pretty much the same for all three - the actual birth was MUCH harder with the bigger babies and I pushed for a much longer time (15 minutes, 1 1/2 hours and 2 1/2 hours respectively). So I'm a little paranoid about having a big baby now.

My OB has told me about some research indicating that a low sugar diet during the last 10 weeks can keep the baby's birthweight down so I'm trying to stay away from sweets and bad carbs now.

Kitty

[Britishmum]

I really think that the concern about big babies is based on a myth and a lack of faith in nature and our own bodies.

I've had a 9lber, a 10lb 4oz, and last week birthed ds at 10lb 8oz. The births were all different, with the first being longest because quite simply it was the first - nothing to do with birth weight. Dh and I are both fairly tall, and big babies run in my family, but all have been birthed naturally.

If it helps, my birth last week of a 10lb 8ozer was very short affair - half an hour in the shower, two pushes, and he was out. I didnt tear at all, and it was honestly no different pushing out a baby this size to a 9lber.

I had to smile when I heard all the horror stories from friends before having ds, about their 'big babies' at 8lbs etc. They all had managed births, and many of them had problems - which they attribute to the baby's size, when imo it was due to them not even attempting to trust their own bodies and birth naturally.

I'd forget the issue of size and focus on learning more about how to help yourself birth naturally. Have you hired a doula to help you? Have you read 'Birthing from Within'? Trust yourself and relax - there is nothing to say that you will have a huge baby, and in any case, it yours is on the large size, it is what nature intended your body to birth, and you will do it.

HTH ;)

[fiddledebi]

I worry about his too! I am curious though- does a heavy baby usually mean a harder birth or does it have more to do with head and shoulder circumference? I have known women who had a harder time birthing 6 lb babies (but they had big heads) than their 8 lbs babies.

Just a thought on this -- my dd was 5lb7oz, and she took 29 hours of labor to pop out. My midwife suggested that small babies might take longer because there's not as much weight pushing down onto the cervix to open it. Who knows?

For the record, I was 5lb11oz and DH was 5lb13oz at birth.

[mehndi mama]

Piping in with my anecdotal eveidence here:
I was a 7 lb baby, and DH was close to 10 lbs (as was DS#1's bio-dad) I am 5'2", 115-120 lbs pre-preg, and fairly small framed. (I was wearing a size 4-6 jeans before my last pregnancy!) I generally gain anywhere from 20-45 lbs with my pregnancies. Less with the smaller babies, more with the bigger ones. I carry entirely in front - you can't even tell I'm pregnant from behind.
My first baby was 9.5 lbs, and was born after 3 hours hard labor (a lot of prodromal before that) - 2 hours pushing. I tore, but I was also propped up on my tailbone on a delivery bed in the hospital delivery room - I was told his shoulders got stuck. I now think that if I were on hands-and-knees (my instinctual pushing position, and the one I used for all my other births), he would not have gotten stuck, nor would I have torn.
My next 3 were all a bit under 7 lbs - one born very sick at 35 weeks, and the other two born at 38 weeks. My 35 weeker came very fast, but I would say his birth was more intense than my first. The next one, I labored off & on for a WEEK, going to 8cm & regressing to 3 the week before she was born. No way I could call her labor fast or easy! And then the next one came fairly quickly, but not as fast as my first. So much for that theory, eh?
Davey (my 5th) was 9 lbs, and was born after about 5 hrs hard labor. Yes, it hurt while I was dilating. I pushed him out in 20 min, with a lot of roaring & swearing. It was very intense.....yet I would not say he was any easier or harder to push out than any of the others. His birth was simply different, and I dealt with things differently. I also birthed him hands-and-knees, and I did not tear, despite having a deep episiotomy/secondary tear scar from my first birth of a "big baby".

So, IMO, birthing difficulties have less to do with the size of the baby, and more to do with:
Mother's nutritional state
Birthing position
Labor management (degree of intervention)

In general, your body will not grow a baby so big that you can't push it out. Women are sectioned/induced FOR FEAR OF a large baby far more often than they recieve emergency sections for babies too big to make the passage. IME, doctors have instilled this fear of a "big baby" (which seems to be considered any baby 8 lbs or over, which I think is stupid - 8 bs is a HEALTHY baby. 12-13 lbs is big!), and try to back it up with ultrasound (which is not an accuratemeasure of birth weight) and glucose tolerance tests (a "borderline" result is often cited as a reason to induce early so the baby doesn't get "too big" - one of the reasons I've always refused the test!).

It really bothers me when I hear of women being worried about having a big baby. It tells me that someone has been planting ideas in their head that big babies are damaging, or hard to birth, or can cause problems......and it's most likely just stories heard in passing from mothers, women-friends, and television about early inductions so the baby doesn't get "too big". Bugs the crap out of me. For me, a big baby was a blessing! They seemed less fragile, I had to be less careful with how they were handled (my larger babies were holding their heads up within days of birth!), and also nursed longer and more frequently right after birth (i.e. less engorgement ;) ) A loss in weight after birth was less alarming.
A larger baby is now my goal. I'm uncomfortable with 7-and-under babies, and I feel as though I've failed them nutritionally when I have smaller babies. I know some women are biologically "programmed" to have smaller babies, but my low-birthweight girls both have skeletal problems - crowded teeth on the older, and brittle bones on the younger, and I feel that that had a lot to do with my nutrition & poor gain during their pregnancies.

Okay, I've written a book here - sorry! I just don't want anyone to fear having a big baby!

[georgia]

Homebirthing mamas just love to grow big babies ;)! I believe that your body will grow your baby to exactly the weight/size s/he needs to be. Believing you can do it....or getting to that place....is exactly your work right now.

I know an itty bitty mama who birthed 12 lber----it took awhile, but, at home, she took all the time she needed. It was awesome!

My 7 lber's birth was the worst experience of my life, whereas my 9 lbers were the best....it really just depends!

You can do it. There are some great "big baby" thread in the birth forum...you might check them out if you need some inspiration.

:wave

[Pepper]

I agree with those who have said that your body will grow a baby that is right for your body! Our bodies know what they are doing.

I am very small (97 lbs, 5'2", size 0 pre-preg) and I naturally birthed a 9-1/2 lb. baby. Granted, I stalled out in transition at 8 cm. for 4-1/2 hours but I still did it. My theory is that such a large baby took a longer time to work her way though my pelvis. I only had a small tear on my cervix.

To hear the phrase "the baby was too big" to justify a c-section or other interventions is one of my biggest birth pet peeves and one of the worst things a pregnant mama can hear. It implies that our bodies somehow made a mistake and thank goodness for medical interventions and hospitals to help us. What an insult :irked:

And why do ob's guess the weight?????? :irked: :irked:

My 9 lber was a great nurser, slept for longer periods after birth and was generally a more content baby than my 7-1/2 lber born at 37 weeks. I am hoping for another 9 lber this time!

[BirthingGoddesses]

Everything as above. :Bow

I had a 8.5#after 58 hours prodrommel, followed by an 11# after 2.5 hours. You can and will:
a> make the right size baby for you and baby-
b> stretch if you need to. {does everyone know that the pelvis is 2 pieces? spliting at the part that the baby goes thru?}

Longer to birth the big baby? nah, not necessarily.
Harder? well- I had to push every darn inch of ds, EVERY inch! On hands and knees works for me too- {as above} I was face down in pillows- I passed the head and thought ok next push will be it-----and oh that was a big one! I thought to my self "YEAH!!! I DID IT!!!" and then i realized no one was saying anything {midwife or dh} then came the next contraction...that "oh all better!" push and relief was just his shoulders. 2 more to get the job done. That was the worst part- if you could call having a few more pushes to get the whole baby out "worse".

read Birthing from Within if you can....

best wishes!

{by the way- my midwife swears i could have a 13# if i needed to-- well, we will see about that! :) }

[ramlita]

Hi!
I'm right there with all of the previous posters, but wanted to add that I had that fear, and it feels very real and scary and like something you have no control over.
I remember, late in my 1st pregnancy, dreaming that some med student sat thoughtfully in the corner during a prenatal visit (funny, since we went to :love midwives :love )and then he got up and showed me some calculations he'd been doing that showed that my baby would be 15 pounds! I woke up so shaken!
I gained 60 pounds during that pregnancy, and my belly was so huge, people asked me if I was having twins whenever I left the house (or so it felt) It's such a scary thing to imagine someone growing inside of you that will have to come out SOMEHOW, but the way out seems so improbable and awful. And I had a very good foundation for trusting the process- I was born at home, saw my brother born at home, we raised goats and sheep who gave birth each spring, I had a wonderful midwife who kept reinforcing that concept that I will not grow a baby too big to get out, etc etc etc... but fear has its own power separate from our rational minds, eh?
Well, my daughter was not 15 pounds, but her head was 15 inches... she weighed 10-8. My labor was hard, but from what I've heard it was pretty average for a first. I didn't tear, and my DD came out fine- not bruised or stressed at all. She was a fantastic nurser, and in fact was above her birth weight when we weighed her at 4 days old. :D
So now that I've BTDT, my fear is not an issue anymore. (Well, actually, we'll see- I'm only 10 weeks :innocent ) I do sorta hope that my first will be my biggest, but, well, I'm just going to eat well and I'm sure things will work out.
Good luck to you- you're gonna be fine!
And do check out Birthing From Within- every midwife I know has a copy to lend out. :thumb

[danaalex]

for my body i have huge babes LOL :). i'm 5'4" on a good day, medium frame, size 6.5 shoe. with my first i gained over 40 lbs, and swelled with fluid everywhere. i had my DD 3 weeks early and she was 7 lbs 10 oz. my second i gained less than 30 lbs, and she was 2 weeks early and 9 lbs 4 oz. i always carry way out in front, which is nice :). this time i'm 21 weeks, measuring several weeks ahead, and i've gained 5 lbs so far, i'm carrying low and in front ( a huge ball :LOL).

i was a little baby at around 6 lbs, and my DH was one of 3 big babes at 8 lbs 8 oz. so................... a little person can have a huge baby, and a big person can have a teeny baby. oh, and one of my friends from high school, who is shorter than me and small frame just had her first baby, a 9 lbs 13 oz son LOL.

[crysmomofthree]

I would have to agree with most of the previous posters.
My first was 8lbs 14oz and I was a pretty tiny 17year old, he came out like a piece of cake, number 2 was 5, 13 (33 weeks) and the labor was longer but pushing was shorter, number 3 was 6lbs, the labor was torture and he remained in a posterior position for the birth, he came out fine as well.
My experience on this is not to be afraid of a big head, I figure at least you know the rest of the baby will fit out.
and heavy babies have more of the gravity effect working for them, and like the other moms said they tend to feed better and seem more settled.
crystal

[momsmyjob]

No, some of the most beautiful births I have seen have been with 12 pound babies. The only thing in my opinion about a larger baby is that you REALLY listen to your body and have NO DRUGS so taht you can feel when to push. If you let your body open up naturally and give it the time it needs, you will not tear.

I have seen 12lb babies come from small women who had NO tears and beautiful home water births.

The myth of a baby too big is based on hospitals with drugged moms in bad positions. Remember, your body was made for this purpose!


:nod

Thank you!! I needed to hear that! Jack, my last boy, was 10 pounds exactly at birth and my mother is freaking out because I am over my due date and she's afraid the baby will get stuck now :eyesroll

[kerikadi]

My biggest baby 9/8 was a 45 minute labor. My second was my most difficult labor, 22 hours and he was 5/12.
My good friend recently had her second baby weighing 10/13 at home with only 5 hours of labor and less than 30 minutes of pushing. Her first was 8/10 and 30+ hours of labor.

Why does a big baby worry you so?

Keri

[mtm]

My first ds was big, 10 pounds, 13 ounces. My labour was short (3 hours of hard labour, 2 and a half hours of pushing). I'm 5'5 and a size 12 non-pg. I had a bit of tearing which was amazing giving the size of ds's head. His head and shoulder size was more a problem than his weight. I'm about the same size this pg as I was last pg so I'm guessing I'm in for another big one. I wouldn't worry about it too much though. Just be prepared to try lots of different positions.

[Shellie]

Even if you do have a big baby, it will be okay!

I'm not quite 5'5" but I have a large frame. Size 9 shoe, largish hands, etc. My dh is about 5'9". His family has a long history of large babies and there are quite a few large babies on my side too.

Our first is a girl and was 8 pounds 2 ounces and 21" long. Our second is a boy. He was 10 pounds 5.5 ounces and 23" long. He has stayed in the 95-105%-ile in height and weight all his life, so I believe he is just genetically programmed to be tall and muscular. (Some HCPs have suggested to me that I must have had undiagnosed GD but I don't believe it for a second.)

The significant part is that I had a 3-hour labor, 20 minutes of pushing and no tearing. This is in addition to him being posterior and asynclitic (his head presented at a funny angle). There was no problem with his shoulders coming through either. I didn't even tear.

I honestly think it is *extremely* rare for a woman to have a baby that she cannot birth. I credit our easy birth to my attitude and my belief that I could birth any baby I could make. I didn't let estimates of him being over 9 pounds intimidate me. I had faith in my body and a supportive OB (I know that's rare). She believed I could have him, I believed I could have him and we just did it.